Malcolm Balk on “Shrinkage”, the Alexander Technique and Slowing the Aging Process

The funny thing is people in our culture seem to start practising this sort of thing earlier and earlier if my casual observations at Starbucks are any indication. What begins out as a casual cool attitude assumed to blend in with the crowd becomes a self imposed yoke which eventually affects every aspect of our being.

A tightly held body makes it more and more difficult to move, bend, balance, indeed to function. You know you're getting old when you think twice about bending down to pick up anything smaller than a five dollar bill! When we're young and youthful, vitality and energy can help compensate for a multitude of sins, but as any athlete knows, you don't recover at 50 like you do at 20.

With the reduction of our physical universe comes a similar shrinking of our social universe. I have a friend in her 50's whose balance and coordination has deteriorated to the point where she fears going out of the house in the winter for fear she might fall. Needless to say, seeing friends, going to a film or concert are now considered 'exceptional' rather than normal events in her life. More shrinkage.

I know people who don't like to drive anymore because their necks are so stiff they can't turn enough to see behind them when they park. They won't take the metro because they find it difficult to walk up the stairs.

Fortunately, we are not doomed. F.M. Alexander, an Australian actor, made several important, beneficial and far-reaching discoveries en route to solving his own vocal difficulties. The Alexander Technique, now available to anyone with an interest to learn and practice, can help reduce and in many instances eliminate the kinds of problems previously considered an inevitable part of aging, including shrinkage! As an Alexander Technique teacher for the last 20 years, I know how it has impacted all areas of my life as well as my students.

Alexander lived to the age of 86, and, in spite suffering from arthritis and the effects of a stroke, managed to teach right up to the time of his death. One of his key discoveries is that we tend to interfere with the 'natural relationship' between the head, neck and back which, when restored to normal functioning (part of the learning process) helps improve posture, balance, coordination and movement. On a practical note, a pupil of mine, who used the AT to improve the way he worked at the computer, also eliminated the chronic back pain he'd been suffering every time he played golf. Another pupil,, whose back pain was so bad he couldn't sit comfortably at the table for more than 15 minutes, was able to enjoy three-hour Sunday brunches with friends after he learned how "not to shrink" his back when he sat. (not sure about his abdomen !!)

The link between "physical and mental" states is much better understood today. Suffice it to say, improved physical functioning is often accompanied with improvements in our 'mental and emotional' state as well. A woman in her 40's reported a sense of hope and renewed optimism after AT lessons helped her reduce the sciatic pain and the need for constant pain medication.

Learning the Alexander Technique requires the commitment and application needed to acquire any new skill: learning a new language or how to dance, for example. It is not a panacea but will invariably bring a measure of improved functioning when and wherever” it is applied. So if shrinkage is something you would like to reduce or better still prevent, check it out and start enjoying life in full.

Learn more about the Alexander Technique.